Norway, In the land of Trolls.

I'm always on the lookout for a good Troll story and some good illustration. This book is great on both counts, I highly recommend it.  Although the stories are great anyway I like the foreword the author has added to each story. It adds to the mystery and folklore, re-sparking the memories and magic  (that I remember as a child) of the stories, keeping them alive for -our children-. By doing so she reflects on history but keeps it current for children today. I also love the illustration that are of simple woodcuts. They have a certain raw quality that echoes the roughness of a troll. There is also something folk about the pictures, within a princess's dress, a church or a tree, but more so on the edges and decoration that reminds me of the old saga silver design, borrowed from the Vikings.

The Norwegian landscape is alive with trolls.

 Not only are trolls the landscape,

 they return to and shape the landscape around them when they die.

The three Billy Goats Gruff

The boy who became a lion, a falcon and an ant.

Butterball

The handshake

The boy and the North Wind.

The white cat in the Dovre Mountain

The sailors and the Troll

The eating competition

The Troll with no heart in his body

To buy, or look at more info about the book, follow this link.

To look at more troll stories, visit my blog post:

The Grandfathers of Troll Illustration

The Golden Bird, Kittelsen

Troll of the forest, Kittelsen.

And a still from the film, The Troll Hunter.